(Dream: Takumi x Corrin)
by choirmother
Summary: No one understood me, specifically the people of Hoshido. When I was forced to choose between Xanders and Ryoma, I shouldn't have. I should've said neither. I should've ended the war right there, but that was a dream. I didn't favor war; but peace seemed like a dream.
1. Just a Dream

**(1) Just a Dream  
**

Takumi didn't understand.

"Traitor!" He mustered as he stretched the string of his bow.

No one understood me, specifically the people of Hoshido. When I was forced to choose between Xanders and Ryoma, I shouldn't have. I should've said neither. I should've ended the war right there, but that was a dream. I didn't favor _war_ ; but peace seemed like a dream.

It was _my_ dream.

I wanted to make that dream true. But I'd have to do more than just _dream_. There was a bigger mastermind behind the war. When you got rid of the mess of soldiers, there was only one person making the mess. Garon. My "father", the Norhian king, he was the one who started the mess. Now, I was just his personal pawn, but I didn't want to be. No matter what, he won't listen to reason. No matter what, I realized there cannot be peace if he stands.

Now, I realized I have to do more than dream up a rebellion .

Although, neither Nohr _or_ Hoshido understood that. They didn't understand that the answer to peace was to work together, and overthrow the person that has been destroying the peace.

Takumi surely didn't understand that, not yet.

That's probably why he was fighting me.

"Face me, Traitor!" Takumi yelled, ignoring the fact I had a name.

Camilla opened her mouth to defend me, but I knew this fight wasn't hers to win. I had to face him. I had to make people understand, and making Takumi understand was the first step. I've been holding off any interaction with him, or anyone of Hoshido. I was to afraid to show my face to them, especially after what happened to our mother. Besides, they didn't want anything to do with a traitor of their homeland. But I knew in time I'd make it up to them. That is, after I'd finish my conquest.

"On your left!" I beckoned to Camilla as a soldier whipped their sword at her.

She flashed around quickly, jumping back after realizing how close her target was.

"Thanks darling!" She cooed over the sound of clashing swords.

I smiled at her before spinning on my heel, tripping a man onto his knees. I shooed him off, showing him mercy. Then, I made eye contact with Takumi. His glassy eyes showed pure hatred, but fear. There was so much behind his honey eyes that I didn't know. But what I did know was that it was my time. I helped Camilla knock down the soldier, then waved a quick goodbye.

"Sweets!" Camilla called. "Wherever are you going?!" She continued to speak, but her voice was drowned out by everything else.

I mumbled to myself, second questioning my decision to leave Camilla. But she was strong, I knew she would be okay without me. So I ran across the stone roads. If I could just make things better with Takumi, everyone would understand. Camilla and I wouldn't have to fight the Hoshidans. I had to try, I knew that I did.

I ducked underneath clashing swords, occasionally defending myself with my own. Slowly, I cleared a path to Takumi. He caught my eye for the second time. This time, he stared into my own. He looked uncomfortable as he stared, but at the same time, he looked ready to snap my neck.

"What do you think you're doing?" Leo asked sterly over the battle cries.

"Doing what I want," I explained.

"What? Are you going to talk to him?" Leo scoffed. "He's the one fighting us! We're just protecting ourselves. He won't listen to reason, no Hoshidans do."

"Because we haven't tried to reason with them," I complained, trying to find an opening.

Leo blocked any of my chances to run off, "No."

"Leo I just want to-" I started, only to be interrupted. I gasped quickly, "On your right!"

An arrow whizzed passed Leo's head. He tilted his head just enough for the arrow to barely get the hair on his cheeks. he cursed under his breath. I took the chance to run away, letting Leo take care of who was attacking him.

"Damn it! Corrin! What were you going to say?"  
I chuckled under my breath as I ran.

"I wanted to tell you your collars inside out!" I shouted at him as I pushed through the bitter air.

He grunted in annoyance.

Takumi was closer now. He started walking his way towards me calmy. Or, at least, acting calm. I sprinted to try and meet up with him, but soldiers began surrounding me. But suddenly, I was trapped in a circle of men. The closed in slowly on me, ready to fire their arrows and swing their swords. I bit my lip, searching for another escape. At that instance, they made a wall by squeezing together. The only escape I had was crawling through their legs, which had zero percent of working. I couldn't attack, my sword barely pierced through their armor.

"Behind you," a familiar voice called.

I gasped, and turned quickly. The soldiers backed away once the prince put up his hand.

My eyes widened. Now was my chance.

"Takumi I-!"

"I'll kill her myself," Takumi interrupted.

At this point I had realized Takumi hadn't approached me for the same reason I had.

"Takumi…" I repeated, ready to plead for mercy and understanding.

Leo and Camilla rushed to my side, making their way through the crowd of Hoshido's soldiers. Lisa called my name, but I didn't respond.

"Takumi, please…" I asked politely.

Takumi looked at me questioningly, and defyingly. I slowly laid down my weapons in front of him, a small "no" came from leo. But I ignored him. I didn't want to get them in the middle of this. After all, I knew what I was doing… kinda.

"This is our fight, not theirs," I said, gesturing to my siblings. "I just wanted to explain myself. I don't want to fight, I never did."

"What is there to explain?" Takumi scoffed.

My heart started pounding. I didn't know what I was saying. I _thought_ I did. But now it was hard to see the light hidden in my mind. The kind I only dreamed about.

"Fight me already!" Takumi demanded as he tightened his grip around the string of his bow.

I flinched back, biting my lip once more. I breathed in deeply. "No."

"What?"

"Takumi, this isn't what I want." I said nervously. "I don't want to fight you!"

"Yeah?"  
"I want to fight for the peace! I don't want to fight Hoshido…"

"Then who are you fighting?"  
"I'm fighting the people that are destroying peace... " I stumbled on my words as they started flowing out of my mouth. "I'm fighting you because you're fighting the peace."

Takumi laughed imitatingly, "Nohr is the ' _peace'_?"

I looked worriedly at the friends lined up behind me.

"No."

Takumi looked more or less confused as me. He let down his bow.

"My father-"

"Our father? The one we had _both_ sworn our birthright to?"

"The king," I corrected, avoiding Takumi's comment. "He's not who I thought he was."

"You must be really foolish."

"Takumi, please listen… I didn't mean to betray you, any of you. All I wanted was peace, I still want peace. I'm not choosing Nohr or Hoshido."

"But you already have."

I had no idea how my speech was going. Takumi seemed to get more aggressive by the second, or maybe he was just that way when he was confused.

"I choose wrong. I should've said I wasn't going to choose either and stop the war then and there. All the king wants is more pawns to use. Like me. But I'm tired of being anyone's pawn. We have to realize the enemy isn't each other, but the mastermind behind it all."

My words were like sap from a tree. My feelings dripped into everyone's ears. My Nohr siblings looking at each other worriedly. How'd he feel about this?

Takumi froze in his track. He knew I was right, but he didn't want to accept it.

"Takumi," I continued. "I want you to fight with me, not-"

And with that, an arrow shot through my hair, stands fell onto my shoulder slowly. The howling wind filled my ears, so I couldn't hear Elise's cries. Warm blood dripped from my ear. I ran my hair through the lock of hair that got perfectly cut off. I felt the small cut on my ear, opening my mouth to continue.

But before I could, an arrow shot into my back.


	2. Next Time

**(2) Next Time**

I felt like I've woken up from a nightmare, but the pain in my shoulder was too real for it to be a dream. I felt around for my ear, which didn't hurt anymore. It must've healed easily, seeing as it left no scars. I fiddled with my (now uneven) hair. All of the sudden feeling easily annoyed. Everything came back to me.

Out of everything, why did Takumi feel the need to ruin my hair?

I yawned, startling Elise.

"I'm glad you're awake! I don't know what I'd do without my big sis…" She said cheerfully. "Does it hurt?"

"The person that ruined my hair is going to hurt," I said jokingly. "Did you heal me?"

"A little," Elise giggled. "So, it doesn't hurt that much?"

"My shoulder hurts, but there's not much you can do about that. What time is it?"

"Late at night. You've only been asleep for so long." Elise paused. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more for your wounds, next time I'll do better."

"It's okay, you did good. It really doesn't hurt that much…"

Elise frowned as she curled her blonde hair, "I couldn't even pull the arrow out…"

I felt around my shoulder, knowing someone had to take it out. It couldn't just _fall_ out.

"Who did then?" I buzzed, scanning the room for faces, curious.

I was resting on my familiar bed, surprised Felicia wasn't running to my side. My room felt oddly empty. Dim candles were lit around the room, providing little light. I strained my eyes, trying to find people hiding in the cracks. As my eyes fell into the corners, I noticed a figure crossing their arms.

"Well…" Elise trailed off.

"I did." Takumi admitted as he tiptoed out of the corner.

His face wasn't how I remembered it. He was more bruised than before, and you could tell some of Nohr's soldiers got a hold of him. He probably deserved it, especially since he shot me. Although, I didn't understand why his prison was _my_ room. It didn't seem very logical for him to be locked up with his "archnemesis".

"Who put you here?"

"I didn't shoot you, Corrin." Takumi stated sternly.

I looked at Elise for help, suddenly thinking I was still in a nightmare. She closed her eyes as if picturing a plan of attack.

"One of our own shot you. After your speech, most of the Norhian men protested." Elise sighed.

I didn't think Elise was telling the truth, but over time, I fit the pieces together. Takumi had lowered his weapon when the arrow was fired. Takumi was facing me, and there's no way he would've been able to shoot me in the back. I were stabbed in the back by your own, literally.

Then it occurred to me.

"Nohr sees me as a threat now, huh?"

Elise bit her cheek, not making eye contact with me. Which was an obvious yes, and meant things were going to go _very_ wrong from here.

"I messed up, didn't I?"

Elise took time to breath in her words. "A little bit."

I really was stupid out there, Takumi was right.

"So why am I here? Why's Takumi here?"

Elise's smile creeped back onto her face, "Takumi here decided he missed his little sister."

Takumi rolled his eyes, trying to hide the fact he was blushing.

"I joined because, I too, want peace." Takumi scrunched up his face, "And, I want to kill Garon…"

Elise bit her cheek a little harder this time. She jumped to her feet when she heard a knock on the door. My heart jumped out of my chest, and I shot up like a rocket. Just now had I realized I wasn't dressed in any proper attire, just a robe to cover me. Not forget, the bandages around my shoulders. My shoulder burst with pain, and I groaned quietly. Whoever it was, I hoped they weren't hunting me down or expecting me to dine with the king.

Elise tiptoed to the door, leaning her ear against it to decipher who was on the other side. She smiled as a sign of good news. She swung open the door without further hesitation, smiling in Xander's presence.

"Big brother!" Elise beamed.

Xander patted her head sympathetically. Than shifting his attention to me. He hurriedly rushed over to my side, sitting down on the bed next to me. His eyes showed concern, which was something you didn't see often from a prince like him. He swept my hair away, examining my ear.

Takumi tried looking away. The "sibling bonding" thing must've been awkward to him. Or maybe _he_ was jealous. Now that'd be a story.

"Are you okay?" Xander asked concerningly. "Next time this this happens I'll… I'll…"

"I'm fine," I laughed nervously. "I appreciate-"

Xander wrapped his arms around me, his grasp feeling stronger than ever. If he wanted to, he could squeeze my brain out of my ears. Right now. In this very moment.

"Alright," I laughed. "That kinda hurts. Careful with the bear hugs."

"I have to stay here," Xander said suddenly.

Elise sat next to Xander on my bed. "Why? You don't have to! Camilla and Leo were planning on you to come with us… I was looking forward to having you around, fighting with us for once!" Elise complained.

All at once, the mood of the room shifted. Tension arose from an aura stirring up in my stomach. Takumi stayed out of the conversation, understanding it wasn't his place to barge in. Elise started sniffling, but I didn't understand why. Xander looked sadder than I've ever see him. And I don't think I've _ever_ seen Xander upset.

"When are we supposed to see you then? We can't do this without you, Xander." Elise sobbed into her hands, leaning on my shoulder. I ignored the pain, giving her the moment.

I tried finding the pieces and putting them together, but I couldn't.

"Xander?" I whispered.

Xander exhaled slowly, "Leo told me about your speech. We all think you have the right intentions, and support you to the end of the world. But, we don't know how the Hoshidans will handle it all." I nodded carefully as Xanders spoke. "But with Takumi, and you, we think we can convince them with peace. Or at least, a plan for peace."

"We're going to the kingdom?"

"It's our only option," Xanders explained.

"We're all going with you, we all want this. But Xander…" Elise blew her nose into the robe I was wearing. I'd have to wash that later.

"Father doesn't know you're here, but, he does know about your act of "betrayal"." Xander said, getting further into detail.

"He'll kill you…" Elise whimpered.

"But we won't allow that, not as long as I live. Elise, Corrin, you have to believe I'm doing this to protect you guys. I have to stay behind to cover for you."

"You can say I killed her and didn't enjoy hearing her speak," Takumi suggested. "Sorry to admit: I've been right here the _whole_ time."

Xander stared him down. "Why would I do that?"

"Like Corrin said, she's just a pawn. If he cared _that_ much, he'd try to attack Hoshido. When he will, we'd be ready."

"I don't th-"

"And if that's not enough, say Hoshido taken Leo, Elise, and Camilla captive. Not that it's true…"

"Xander, this could work." I thought outloud.

Xander stopped to think. Elise occasionally nodding her head to the idea. At this point, I confirmed Takumi was a lot smarter than any of us. It seemed to be our only real option. His idea seemed flawless, a win-win for everyone. The only problem would be…

"You'd have to really convince the people in Hoshido for this to happen. Not only that, but, you'd have to convince them fast." Xander explained.

"That's possible." Takumi confirmed without hesitation.

Xander stood up. "And you'd have to explain to them in detail how this will work."

"We'll have to make it work."

Xander stood close to Takumi, whispering. "Most of all, you'll have to take care of Corrin for me. And if she gets hurt, then next time..."

Takumi tried not to make uncomfortable eye contact with Xander, nodding his head, and promising in a hushed voice, " _I will."_

At that instance, Xander reached for my hand. He held it tightly, with a stronger grasp than the one I remember from when we were kids. He looked me in the eyes, and all I could see was the big brother I grew up with. Tears built up behind my eyes, but I refused to let them out. It was always that way with Xander. I wanted him to see me strong, and I wanted him to see me even stronger when we would see each other once more.

"I'll be gentle with the bear hug," Elise smiled as she pulled us both into a group huddle. Camilla and Leo, who had unexpectedly been waiting outside, walked into the room. After hearing the chaos calm, they must've figured it was okay for them to enter. They silently joined in with the hug, and I could've sworn I felt Leo crying. Camilla wrapped her arms around my waist, careful not to put me in more pain than I already was.

I could feel the awkwardness radiat from Takumi, but I didn't let it ruin the moment. For a solid two minutes we stayed there, Leo and Elise crying, Camilla and Xander staying still.

"Next time we see you, the war will be over." I croaked.

"And next time I see you all," Xander squeezed us all. "We'll hug longer."


	3. Left Behind

**(3) Left Behind**

With the help of Felicia, sneaking out of Nohr was easy. Of course, she refused to come with us. She wanted to stay behind with Xander's, thinking it'd look to suspicious if everyone suddenly disappeared. So we were stuck with Camilla, Leo, Elise, Takumi, and Niles. I felt bad for Niles, being the odd one out, but he wanted to come. Wherever Leo went, he went, which was kinda creepy…

We all traveled by horse, or dragon, or wyvern, or whatever we had. Walking on foot would make us too tired, and our goal would be hard to reach if we were late. Tonight, I declared that we'd reach Fort Dragonfall. Camilla mentioned she had people she had friends there, and they'd have no problem with us staying. So, there was where we were headed.

It was a pretty smooth ride, besides the constant complaining coming from Takumi and Leo. I guess putting them on the same horse wasn't a good idea. Takumi basically refused to hold onto Leo, so he ended up (nearly) being trampled on, at least seven times. Besides that, everyone rode smoothly. Niles rode with Elise, which made Elise feel slightly uncomfortable… But the point is at least we got their. Thanks to Camilla, I didn't have to deal with any whiny children.

But I did feel _some_ sympathy for Takumi.

"Do you think Hoshido will attack Nohr first?" Camilla murmured to me.

"I mean, we do have Takumi…" I reminded.

She continued to keep her eyes on the road, frowning. "Do you think they'll leave him behind? I mean, in the depths of war, there are some people you _have_ to leave behind."

I thought hard, suddenly feeling heartbroken. Would they really do that?

Camilla faked a laugh, and turned her head sideways to look at me. "Oh darling!" She bickered. "I'm sorry for bringing it up, really, it's nothing to worry about. Just keep being your sweet self and we'll all make it though."

"Camilla…"

"Just my silly self rambling. You should know better not to listen to your big sister by now!" She laughed longer.

She was really overdoing it.

"I understand…" I contemplated. "I'm not a child anymore."

"You're growing up so fast," She murmured sweetly under her breath.

The air was crisp as we flew. My hair blew all over the place with the wind. I tried to hold it back with one hand, the other holding on to Camilla. But there was no hope in fixing it. I feel like now that it was extremely uneven, I hated my hair more.

Most of the ride there, my hair covered my eyes, and I couldn't see a thing. So I didn't realize when we were there. Camilla pulled us to a halt, holding her hand up dramatically as if we just arrived at god's gates. She let out a breath, and jumped off her ride. Everyone else did too, and as by Camilla's orders, they tied them up inside a close stable.

I looked around curiously, watching for any form of life. But no one was there.

"Camilla, where are your friends?" I asked suddenly.

"Oh darling, that's the joke. This fort is abandoned, no one is here. Welcome to Fort Dragonfall, I'm my own friend!" She laughed at herself. She pinched my cheeks, "Oh, but not to forget you! You're my best friend, don't worry sweetie!"  
"Hey!" Elise called as she jumped off her horse. She bit her cheek, giving Camilla the puppy-dog-eyes that everyone falls for.

Camilla hugged Elise. "Never to forget you! The cutest little one I know!"

Leo cleared his throat, "Eh-hem. Camilla, we should set up for the night."

Camilla straightened her back, letting go of Elise. "Right, this way everyone!"

Elise followed close behind Camilla, and Niles talked to Leo. Probably flirting, but at least Leo wasn't with Takumi again. I much rather someone flirt with my brother than fight with him. Then again, Takumi did seem a bit lonely. I realized Takumi didn't have his weapons, which means he probably gave them up a while ago; or, of course, it meant they didn't trust him.

I didn't want Takumi to feel left behind, so, I took some steps back to meet with him. He stayed silence, pretending not to notice me. I felt slightly uncomfortable, knowing what the conditions were between us. I'm not sure if we were even on "speaking levels", at the moment.

"Are you okay?" Takumi questioned abruptly.

I flinched back, surprised he talked to me. "Yeah!" I said a little too enthusiastically. "I've never been better, I mean, I'm really happy. I mean, I'm-"

"I was talking about your wounds," Takumi smiled a bit. "But I'm glad you're happy. That's kinda a weird thing to find in a war."

"I'm not happy about the war… But I'm happy the wars going to be _over_."

"I see…"

Then there was more silence.

"Well," I sang awkwardly, "You did a really good job, coming up with a plan like that. You're really smart."

Takumi's cheeks got pink, and he looked away from me. "Thanks?" He said questionably.

"I mean it."

He bit his lip nervously. "Thanks." He muttered, quieter this time.

"Aha!" Camilla called out. "Here's the door. I'll need someone to help me with thi-"

"I will," Takumi called out anxiously.

Camilla raised an eyebrow, and looked at me first. I shrugged, nodding slightly. Leo shot a look of disgust at Takumi, which made me want to lecture him on politeness. Though, in all honesty, I was surprised Takumi was helping. I was pleased with him, even if it was just the littlest help. I felt like a proud mother bird.

"On three, okay? One… two… three!" Camilla shouted as the door roared open. Takumi and Camilla didn't break a sweat opening the giant door. Which, I found suprising.

"What's next, Camilla?" Leo asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"Well, if we want to sleep here, we need supplies." Camilla admitted, "But I didn't think about bringing anything."

Leo groaned in annoyance.

"But of course, I know where they keep extra supplies. You can thank me later," Camilla smiled wide. "I'm going to need Niles to stay here with Corrin and Takumi, the rest of us will go back with our dragon friends and horses. We'll come back with some blankets, maybe some food if we're lucky."

Niles nodded, chuckling, "I'll keep these two in line."

"Oh, but of course, Leo…" Camilla giggled, "We have to fix that collar of yours."

Elise laughed too, nudging Leo as he whinned about how we never told him about these things.

"You guys find a place to set up." Camilla waved us goodbye as Elise followed.

Leo eyed Takumi before turning to leave with Camilla. Leo was probably jealous Takumi got to stay with me. He often felt that way about anyone. Either way, Takumi avoided him, and walked carefully into the fort. Like Camilla had said, no one inhabited the place. It looked like everyone just packed up and left. It was unbelievably empty, and I didn't think the rest of the place was different.

I stopped to sit down at a fire place. Obviously, it wasn't lit, but I liked pretending it was. The stone floor and walls were colder than it was outside. I just hoped that the others would come back with blankets. The fireplace still had some wood in it, and I'm sure if Leo was here, he could light it. There were no ashes left, probably scattered around by the breeze passing through.

Niles knelt next to me politely. "Did you want me to light that? Because I don't mind."

I raised my eyebrows at him.

"I have stuff in my bag…"

"What _do_ you have in your bag?"

Niles laughed, "You'd be surprised."

I decided not to question Niles any further than I had. He lit the fire easily. I don't know how because he was blocking the view, but he did. He let out a small "tada" and sat down on a box in a corner. I creeped closer to the fire, wishing my shivering would stop.

Sooner or later, Takumi scooted next to me. He didn't say anything, just held his hands out to feel the warmth. His knees were tucked under his chin, and he looked like he was ready to transform into a ball. He cleared his throat a few times, making matters more awkward.

Takumi hadn't said anything for at least twenty minutes. Niles hummed in the back, doing whatever he was doing. My eyes drooped down a few times, feeling sleepy out of boredom. I watched the door carefully to see when Camilla and the others would come.

Takumi coughed, then spoke softly. "I heard you and Camilla talking."

My stomach dropped. "What were we talking about?"

Takumi avoided the question. "They won't come back for me. They _will_ leave me behind." Takumi admitted, gloomily.

"Takumi, I'm sure they miss you."

"I understand why you had to leave Xanders, but this is different." Takumi choked on his words, "They don't miss me, they won't even realize I'm gone… I'm just a left behind soldier." Takumi pulled his knees closer to his chest, squeezing his legs tightly.

I paused, thinking carefully about what to say next. But before I had the chance to say anything, Takumi continued.

"Mother, the queen, she was the only one who payed attention to me. My whole life I've been living in the shadow of who I'm supposed to be… and she understood that. Mother understood I felt lonely. But now…" Takumi trailed off.

I felt heartbroken by Takumi's words. I never realized how he'd felt.

"I just want to be something. Not someone else. And Mother understood that…" Takumi continued.

I felt guilty. Gulping before asking, "Do you blame me for what happened to her?"

Takumi shrugged. "I don't know. I ask myself that often." Takumi sighed, "Maybe I just blame you because I blame myself. I should've done something…"

Niles humming continued.

"You did your best, Takumi. You always do."

We shared the silence. Takumi bit his lip in embarrassment, not knowing what to say. I did the same, feeling anxious.

"Well, Takumi," I went on, placing my hand on his arm. "I can assure you, I won't leave you behind. I can't speak for the others, but I _know_ that with me around, you'll never be left behind." I smiled kindly at him.

He blushed, quickly changing the subject. He tugged on my hair softly, feeling it between his fingers. "If you want, I can fix your hair for you…"


	4. Return

**4) Return**

The others returned late at night, long after I fell asleep. The fire was out when I woke up in the morning. I was one of the first to arise out of bed. I awoke curled up in a pile of worn out, smelly, blankets. Everyone fell asleep in the same room, although, Takumi was nowhere to be seen. My breathing quickened. A mini trauma attack in the morning was not what I signed up for.

Niles snored loudly, interrupting my thoughts. Maybe Takumi just left becuase the noise was bothering him. I got up curiously, thinking I'd have to look all around for Takumi. The fort was so big, I thought it'd take me years. Honestly, I thought Leo would watch him like a hawk, but he was fast asleep.

There was always the possibility he ran away, but that seemed very out of character. Maybe someone took him. Or maybe I shouldn't think about it too hard…

I stopped to breath, then tiptoeing into the next room. To my surprise, Takumi was at the end of the room, staring out the window. I smiled in relief. He was fiddling with something, clearly lost in thought. He looked worried, sad, and confused all at the same time. He ran his fingers through his own hair, careful not to mess up the style it was in. He seemed nervous; but the sun shining on his face made him look hopeful.

"Good morning." I greeted him.

He turned around frantically, meeting my eyes. "You scared me."

I chuckled, "You scared me first. What are you doing in here?"

Takumi seemed flustered. "You said you wanted help with your hair, right?"

I nodded carefully.

"Well, I used to cut Sakura's hair, I thought I could do it to yours too. I mean, if you want."

"That'd be nice, thank you, Takumi. But, there's one problem…" I observed.

"No scissors," He finished. "Yeah. I couldn't find scissors, but I found a dagger. The place is full of them, if you look hard enough."

I stared at Takumi in surprise. To think he went through all that trouble, just to cut my hair. It was awfully nice of him to do. I knew the others would freak out over Takumi having a dagger, but I knew he meant no harm with it. I knew for certain he wasn't going to hurt me, not now, at least.

I easily trusted Takumi, even though he didn't trust me yet.

"Um…" Takumi trailed off. "If you want to sit down on the crate, I can start…"

"Thank you." I repeated in advance, sitting down where he patted on the crate.

He ran his fingers through my cream blonde hair. With a quick movement he took off my headband. His hands were gentle, careful not to pull or tug on my hair. He breathed in through his nose before starting to cut it. I wasn't sure how well he'd do with a dagger, but I trusted him to return it to looking okay (at the least).

"Your hair is very b- pretty." He said nervously. "You sure you want to cut it off? It'll be way shorter than it is now."

"Whatever you think is best, Takumi." I smirked.

With that, Takumi continued to run his fingers through my hair. Only then did I realize how uncared for it was. I haven't had time to brush _or_ wash it for the last couple days. Back in Nohr, we were very pampered, but not since we left. Although, no matter how messy my hair was, Takumi continued to compliment it under his breath.

Bit by bit, clumps of hair started falling off. The hair fell swiftly onto the stone floor. The snoring from the other room filled the cracks of silence. For using a dagger, Takumi was doing surprisingly good, I expected him to have stabbed me in the ear at least five times by now. Maybe a few time on the neck.

Takumi didn't take much time with my hair, but I could tell he put in a lot of effort. After he'd finished, my clothes were covered in little hairs he'd cut off. He dusted them off my back, and swept them off his hands. He turned to face me, and I tilted his head for him to see. He held my face, then taking another lock of hair. He made a few corrections before nodding in approval. He smiled for a few seconds, seeming happy with himself. I smiled back at him, thanking him once more.

"I couldn't find a mirror for you to look in, but I'm sure you can see your reflection in one of the windows, or something." Takumi admitted, suddenly, I felt like he was starting to warm up to me.

I felt my hair, having it short felt good. It was like less weight to was on your back, (which was probably a good thing considering you already held a gigantic sword). He did a good job of evening it out, and I was surprised. It seemed he ran his fingers through them so much, all the tangles were out. He must've been a miracle maker.

"Sakura was sure to been lucky, having you as her barber." I giggled.

"Well, then I guess I'll have to make a return if I was 'so good'." Takumi joked.

"We'll both return soon, and then we'll all work together. I'm sure everyone, including Sakura, misses you."

"Right." Takumi nodded shyly.

The snoring had ceased in the other room, which meant Niles was awake. If he was awake, then it had to be sure the others were starting to rise too. You enjoyed the few seconds of seeing Takumi smile, and let him enjoy the thought of returning. You felt there was no need to clean up the hair Takumi had cut off, and moved towards the door.

"I'm sure the others are waking up, we should go back."

Takumi silently agreed, letting me walk through the door first. Elise was the first to greet me. She jumped to her feet and ran to my side. She stood on her tiptoes to feel my hair, looking in awe.

"You're hair looks so nice! I kinda miss it being long… but this looks cute!" Elise squealed.

Niles nodded in agreement.

"I have some extra bows and flowers we could put in! We could style it!"

Camilla fixed her own hair before walking up to me. "Oh, sweetie, who did your hair? It looks divine."

I took a glance at Takumi, scared if I admitted he did it, he'd get in trouble.

"Um…" I trailed off.

Takumi raised his hand innocently, pointing to himself. "I did it."

Right as Takumi said that, Leo had arised. Leo's eyes widened as he looked at Takumi and I. His eyes scanned Takumi's face, then glancing at my hair. It was hard not to laugh at Leo with his collar up, not to mention, his major bed head. His dark brown eyes peered over us with questioning. His eyebrows suddenly twitching, looking more annoyed than ever.

Leo pointed to Takumi. "He did your hair?"

Camilla put her arm around Takumi, "You have to admit, he did a very good job with it."

Takumi's face went red. He ducked out of Camilla's grasp awkwardly. She shrugged, and moved on to hugging Elise.

"Corrin," Leo started. "Did you want this _scum_ to cut your hair? If you really wanted, you should've told me, and I would've openly done it."

I huffed up my chest, letting out a quick sigh. "Takumi offered very politely, and I took up the offer."

Elise and Camilla watched, afraid of where the conversation would go.

"Well, I could've done it. You know, I would've been open to doing it. You didn't need some filthy _scum_ like him to do it."

"She wanted me to do it," Takumi butt in. "And I'm not a scum, so stop calling me that." Takumi said quieter

"Leo-" I bursted out, only to be stopped.

"Scum." Leo muttered.

Takumi took a step closer to Leo, as if ready to engage in a fist fight. But we weren't each other's enemies, they had to understand that. Takumi's pale white fingers dug into his skin, his fist clenched. Leo grinded his teeth in return. Clearly, having them in the same room was not a good idea (alongside putting them on the same horse).

Takumi whinned, "You're the scum, a true _Norhian scum_!"

Elise gasped. Niles avoiding any contact with the argument.

"Boys!" Camilla and I called in synch, only to be ignored.

"Why don't you go return to your scared Hoshido family? Or did they leave you behind? Are you left behind, Hoshido scum?"

"Leo, enough," Camilla declared as she scooped him up in her arms. "I think you and Takumi need some time away from each other. Corrin?"

I nodded an "okay". Takumi, without a word, stormed outside. I followed him out, the brightness of the sun blinding me for a few second. It was a lot different than how it was yesterday. The sun felt warm, and the black in my armor absorbed it quickly. It was different than how it was inside the castle, that's for sure. It made me never want to return.

The tension of before slowly fades, Takumi taking his time to calm down.

Takumi continued walking, not caring, or waiting for me to catch up. The grass felt good against my bare feet. Some of it was still damp from last night's downpour. It felt nice compared to the beating sun. Takumi must've felt hot too. I mean, with the thick armor, it was only expected. Takumi moved towards a forest of trees, leaving the field of green.

"Takumi," I hollered at him.

He stopped, turning towards me. Sorrow hid behind his eyes.

"We shouldn't go too far," I concluded.

Takumi hesitated. "There is a lake near by, maybe you can see your reflection in it."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Have you been here before?"

"Who do you think inhabited this place?"

The Hoshidans.

Takumi continued into the forest of trees. Leaves fell occasionally due to the soft breeze. You could tell by the blooming flowers spring was on its way. Sooner or later, we saw a sparkle of water through the trees. I ran ahead, staring in awe at the lake. It's bright blue color was almost blinding against the sunshine. The lake reflected the entire sky, and as I looked in, I felt like I was flying.

Takumi leaned against a tree, feeling proud of himself. He approached me carefully, patting my back. He knelt down, his shoes getting covered in mud. He looked into the water, then turning my own head to look in. He was right, I could see my reflection. I was defiantly pleased with how my hair turned out. I looked from a few different angles before grinning at Takumi. He smiled back sweetly. I felt a bit more confident which short hair, more or less, cuter.

Takumi's smile quickly faded.

"I'm sorry about Leo…" I finally said. "He defiantly went too far."

Takumi snorted, "No need to ruin the moment, sister."

"I promise, we'll both return to Hoshido in time."

Takumi made ripples in the water, looking up to the other side of the lake. A tall, beautiful woman stood on the other side. Takumi and I shot up in synch, startled. I squinted my eyes to catch the girl's eyes. She started back at me, her bright blue hair swaying with the breeze.

"Azura?" I questioned to myself.

"Azura!" Takumi shouted across the way, obviously recognizing her from Hoshido.

"Lady Corrin, Takumi. You have to leave! She-" Azura started, her voice echoing through the meadow.

With that, a blur of red ran from the other side of the woods. Soldiers followed close behind the leader. Most on horses, each equipped with bows and swords. I looked at Takumi, but his eyes wouldn't leave Azura or the soldiers. By their armor, you could tell they were Hoshidons.

"I thought I saw Nohrians here, but I didn't expect- brother, sister- You've come to return!"


	5. Repeat

**(5) Repeat**

Hinoka waved to us violently from across the way. She seemed the same happy she was when she met me. Tears looked ready to flow out, or maybe that was the glimmer of water. My life was on repeat. History was repeating itself. It made me happy, but I knew she was happy for the wrong reason. Takumi glanced at me, concerned. His honey eyes reflected the sun, but the sun quickly turned into clouds. My maroon eyes found Hinoka's instead, but her eyes had stopped smiling. She muttered something to Azura, but obviously, I couldn't hear. Azura seemed upset, yet, emotionless. She probably knew this was going to happen eventually, I did too. History couldn't help but repeat itself.

But, I didn't want that to happen.

"Hinoka!" I cried out. "I we need to talk."

Hinoka scoffed.

"Hinoka!" I repeated.

Slowly, more soldiers filed out of the woods. Pines were caught in their hair, covering them like sprinkles. Their armor was stained with blood, and you could tell they've come a long ways. They looked ready for anything, each having some sort of battle scar. The Hoshidians were clearly tougher than we thought, at least, tougher than I've thought…

Something brewed up in the brush behind us. It rattled, and made a few whining noises. I turned as Elise emerged.

And suddenly, my life was on repeat.

"Sister, we…" Elise trailed off as she dusted herself. A few tears were in her sleeves from getting caught on thorns and branches. Her eyes widened in surprise to the presence of Hoshidians.

Everyone seemed more confused by the second.

"Well…" Elise trailed off awkwardly, her eyes meeting with Hinoka. "Are you fighting her?" She muttered quiet enough so no one could hear but me.

I shook my head, then nodded when I saw the soldiers, then shook my head again. We weren't fighting Hinoka. I didn't _want_ to fight Hinoka, honestly. Maybe if she listened we could go back to Hoshido. We could negotiate, and things would work out… then again, I wasn't quite sure if Hinoka was one to negotiate. Maybe since she thought we were returning, she'd bring us in. But what of-

Suddenly, Niles came running. He repeated Elise, he stopped in his tracks.

"Are we fighting these guys?" He repeated, watching me for orders.

"Well-"

"Darling! There you are, we were so worried!" Camilla beamed. "Oh no, were these Hoshidians picking on you?"

"Camilla, I-"

Hinoka's eyes widened as everyone came through, quickly looking furious. Her eyebrows furrowed. "You kidnapped Tamuki, didn't you?"

My heart raced. Soldiers started getting closer, like they were trapping us in a cage.

Hinoka grinded her teeth, saying to herself "I'm so stupid" or maybe it was " _she's_ so stupid". She swept the red out of her face gracefully, just to fully expose her enraged eyebrows. She looked sad, and angry- I guess it ran in the family. I could've sworn she was ready to run across the water, but only Azura seemed to be able to do that; but Azura has disappeared into the heads of soldiers. You'd think finding bright blue hair like hers would be easy…

I flinched back into Camilla, who was whispering something under her breath. She sounded like she was making battle plans, but I couldn't be so sure. Clearly, we were out numbered, but I had faith in us if we had to fight. Camilla, Niles, and Elise were all strong. We could take on Hinoka, if it came to that… except for the fact…

"Leo?" I asked Camilla.

Camilla laughed, "He's still having quiet time. He's pretty pouty right now. We can't have a child on the field, after all."

I would laugh in return, but seeing as we were in battle, it seemed like an inappropriate thing to do.

"Takumi…" Hinoka called out in desperation. "Takumi!" She repeated, louder. Her voice echoing as it did before.

Takumi didn't even look twice at Hinoka. I glanced at him in the same way Hinoka had, but his mind seemed somewhere else. He looked lost in thought, like he was thinking hard about what to do next. He looked like he was trapped in a sort of black void. He must've been thinking hard, maybe he felt like he needed to choose. I knew how that felt, I just hoped he'd make the right choice.

I certainly didn't want to lose Takumi, especially after just getting him back. Though, in all honestly, I wanted him to make the right choice. Although, I didn't know what was the _right_ choice anymore, I knew it wasn't this. It wasn't endless war that would just repeat over and over…

Hinoka and I waited in silence, waiting for Takumi to speak. But we couldn't expect him to choose, if anything, I didn't think it was likely he'd stick with us. But I was prepared for everything… Almost. But before could wait for Takumi's response, an arrow flew past my head. My eyes followed it as it stuck into a tree. Niles and Camilla eyebrows raised, nearly being pierced by the arrow. Lucky for Camilla, who was standing behind me, she didn't get her hair cut off. They both dodged it easily, which made me think I had a magnet inside me that attracted arrows.

Hinoka grunted loudly, making it clear that _that_ wasn't the plan. I didn't blame her.

Everyone looked to me for orders. I didn't want to fight, but we clearly had to defend ourselves. Seeing as her soldiers were getting impatient, I'm sure talking would end badly. Though, how much I wanted to try, I knew the minority didn't. So, I just nodded slowly, seeing as the endless soldiers had no end.

I didn't doubt we couldn't take them on, I just doubted how smart we'd be. (Without Leo, it made things a bit harder on us). Along with that, Takumi didn't seem very hopeful in the moment. Honestly, they were both critical to the party. Without them, things felt less livley, and enemies felt less… dead.

Immediately after the arrow had hit the tree, I was in a wave of soldiers. Takumi's face faded into them, and I felt like I was being torn away from everyone. Camilla and Niles went to fight somewhere else, but I wasn't to concerned about them. They were tough, but I'm not sure how Takumi would do fighting against his true siblings… (which didn't include me that they called "traitor").

Right as Elise grabbed my arm, Takumi disappeared from my mind, but then he came back. Elise was on the brink of tears, biting her check. She wrapped her arms around her staff, as if hugging it. She clearly needed help, and she didn't want to be alone here; yet, I wanted to stay with Takumi to make sure he wouldn't be alone either.

I was afraid too.

Even so, I nodded, drawing my sword to protect Elise. She stayed close behind me, her back pressed against mine. The warmth of her back oddly felt like Takumi's hands. I looked at her through my peripheral vision, knowing I was acting ridiculous. I guess whenever I was on the battlefield I did act slightly ridiculous.

Elise grabbed my arm occasionally, each time I got a tiny scratch she'd heal it up right away. I didn't take that many hits, Elise helped me dodge several of them. I cleared most of the enemies hoarding me quickly, and moved on to the next ones rolling in. I made sure not to injure them to the point they were on the brink of death, but I made sure they didn't try to attack us again.

My ears started ringing due to the screaming of others. I couldn't make out if they came from any of ours, but it sure did hurt. Elise squeezed tighter once she heard it, and suddenly, everything went quiet. I though I went deaf, but really, I must've gone blind; not being able to see Ryoma approach me was troubling. He was almost too big to missed, yet, I didn't see him coming. Elise ran, probably crying, not that I could hear. She scattered frantically away from him. I tried to call after her, but that made my ears ring more. She probably expected me to follow, but stupidly, I didn't.

When I looked into Ryoma's eyes, I felt like I was repeating myself. The same eyes of longing I've seen before were glossed over. Care, sympathy, and compassion hid behind burning eyes. Ryoma looked almost as furious as Hinoka, maybe a little calmer. More or less, his grip didn't waver. He snatched my arm up, as firm as metal bars. He pulled me up aggressively, holding me up to his face. He seemed to lifted me feet off the ground, and I didn't realize until then how tall he was. He looked ready to bite my head off, and stab me with his sharp armor. But to my surprise, he didn't. He mercifully threw me to the ground, shouting something to the others in the distance. But, of course, I couldn't hear him.

My head hitting the trampled grass felt like a rock. I felt dizzy, and didn't realize when Ryoma pulled me up again. Except, it wasn't Ryoma, it was Takumi. I felt relieved, and happy. I smiled wide at him, feeling about ready to fall over. He had helped me off the ground, probably looking disgustedly at the mud that covered me. I wrapped my arms around him, but his arms didn't claps around me.

And then a dagger was thrusted into my shoulder, even worst than the last. My breathing felt the same, the ground felt the same as I hit it, even the sky looked the same when I looked up. The only thing different was the look on Takumi's face. And I blacked out.

In the end, I couldn't stop history from repeating.


End file.
